A Shard Of Chaos
by VTPM
Summary: I'm really bad at summaries, so this is about Number 96: Dark Mist and how he became corrupted with Don Thousand's power. Not sure what else I should say about it, so hope you like it.
1. The Void

**Dark Mist: The reason I'm writing this is because I had a fight with Lance and I was demanded to write a story about my background, so here it is. Also keep in mind this is the first thing I've ever written, so if anyone dares laugh I will personally rip out their throats and-**  
 **Me: I'll stop him there to spare you the details. (He can get pretty descriptive and violent sometimes, so...)**  
 **Dark Mist: Also keep in mind I'm only a child in this, so don't be surprised if I seem different at first.**

Silence.

Everything around me was dark and quiet. I couldn't see or move at all. It was kinda like being in a coma except I was completely conscious. Not that I really know what it's like to be in a coma. The only thing I really know is this blackness around me. I'm not even sure how long I've been in existence. Could have been 1 hour or maybe a thousand years.

The nothingness was honestly almost maddening. It was torture to be awake yet unable to do anything or even know where you are. I don't even know much about myself.  
Only that I don't know how much longer I can stay here like this and my name, which is Dark Mist by the way.

So I waited longer...and longer, but nothing happened.

I returned my thoughts back to trying to remember something, _anything_ , about myself or any other subject. I just wanted to remember, to know I have some sort of memories of a person, place, or an object.

But sadly, nothing ever came to me and the eternal darkness stretched on forever more just as the endless passing time did.

Having given up hope of memories, I began wondering what I could do.

Without a body or anything other than my thoughts, those options were pretty limited.

Maybe I _am_ in a coma after all. But that really didn't explain the memory loss.

Perhaps I'm trapped somewhere? It seemed possible as well, but why can't I move or feel anything or even see?

Was this just a nightmare? Why haven't I woken up yet? Would I ever?

I sighed, knowing I was looking for answers I could never find on my own.

I decided to just stop thinking, since it was fruitless anyway.

Another uncountable amount of time passed and my earlier curiosity had started morphing into uneasiness, and soon, even sheer panic. Eventually all the feelings just drained out of my mind, only to be replaced with frustration shortly after.

But, of course, there wasn't much I could do about being frustrated. This was really getting tiring, for I was just going in a repetitive circle of thoughts and was getting nowhere or having anything useful being accomplished.

I finally was able to put my thoughts to rest and just focus on nothing, which was honestly much better than constantly trying to come up with answers that I could never prove.

Even more slowly passing time went by, until finally something happened.

There was a light somewhere in front of me and I could actually _see_ for the first time in my entire existence, though I couldn't make out what was past the bright light.

Then I noticed the light was getting bigger and brighter, closer even.

I wasn't sure if I should be over-joyed or terrified, but there wasn't much I could do to escape it, so I simply watched it get closer until I had to close my eyes due to the intensity of the glow.

I must have passed out because the next thing I know, I staring at, well, _something_. Hey, I'm seeing for the first time, so cut me some slack, okay? I don't know what anything is really, at least not by sight.

When I finally got myself oriented, I noticed I had a body, unlike I ever before. It was humanoid with black skin and green crystals.

It took another minute or two to get used to how to move my muscles and even longer before I could sit up.

Then I heard something, which is something else I've never experienced.

I quickly looked around the room, looking for a hiding spot. I saw a large blue crystal and tried to run to hide behind it, but collapsed on the ground. I still wasn't used to  
having a body. I managed to stagger the rest of the way over before the person came into the room.

It was a female, who was a good deal taller than me. She didn't seem too threatening, but I wasn't about to take any chances in case I was wrong, especially since I still could barely stand.

She stopped when she saw I wasn't where I had woken up, which is where I suppose this person must have left me while they were away.  
 _  
But how did she find me? Where had I been?_

I scooted back further into cover behind the crystal as she started searching the room.

She started getting closer to my hiding spot and I started panicking.

That's when she caught sight of me.

"There you are. I've been looking all over for you." She said, while smiling sweetly, but I knew she could be faking kindness.

I scooted back into cover again, and stared at her dis-trustingly.

"It's alright. I won't hurt you. You can come out." She said, then added, "My name's Ena, what's yours?"

"Dark Mist..." I replied hesitantly.

She stood back out of the way a little, trying to show I could come out from behind the crystal. I carefully edged closer to her and away from the safety of my hiding spot.

She seemed pleased with this and smiled kindly at me again. "See? I won't hurt you."

I nodded slowly and started looking around the room, since I hadn't had much of an opportunity to do this earlier.

"Now, you stay here and I'll be right back." Ena said, then went to the door and shut it behind her, leaving me alone in the room.

I went over to the spot I'd been in when I first woke up and sat down, waiting for her to come back after she did who-knows-what.

* * *

 **Dark Mist: Ta da. First chapter. Yay. I'm so going to kill Lance for this later...  
Me: Dark Mist, cheer up. You did good. And if you kill Lance, I'll make sure you regret it for the rest of your life, got it?  
Dark Mist: Yeah, yeah. Whatever...**


	2. Explosions In The Night

Dark Mist: As I'm sure you can tell by the title of this chapter, things are going to get interesting.

* * *

It wasn't long before Ena returned, though she wasn't alone.

The new figure was slightly taller then me, but only by a few inches. He was also a pale blue, some places so pale, they were actually pure white. His right iris was white,  
while the other was golden-yellow.

I stared up at him nervously, wondering if he'd be as kind as Ena had been, at least, as she's been so far.

He had a simple blank expression that portrayed no feelings whatsoever as he walked a little closer to me.

I shifted uncomfortably as he started invading my personal space, like he was trying to study me.

When he finally started getting on my nerves, I shoved him away, sick of him observing me like I was some sort of test subject.

He seemed slightly displeased with me for pushing him, but said nothing. He stepped back and whispered something to Ena I couldn't hear before returning his attention to me again.

"My name is Astral." He said, finally introducing himself. "I hear you are Number 96: Dark Mist, correct?"  
 _  
Wow, this guy talks like a freaking robot_.

I simply nodded.

He frowned slightly and seemed to be thinking it over.  
 _  
What's there to think about, though? It's just my name.._. I thought.

"And you've been inside the Number card all this time?" He asked.

"Number card? What's that?" I asked, confused.

Astral glanced at Ena, then said, "It is a source of great power."

As if that cleared things up any better, but I didn't ask further since I could tell he wasn't going to explain any more.

There was a bit of an awkward silence, before Ena broke it. "Astral, why don't you show Dark Mist around the city?"

Astral dipped his head in acknowledgment, then motioned for me to follow him.

I had to run to catch up, since he didn't seem to take into account that I'm still not entirely used to being alive and he had slightly longer legs than me.

After we'd gotten away from the room I asked, "How long have I been in that 'Number card'?"

"A few centuries." Astral answered simply, not even bothering to look at me.

After going down several long corridors and a few flights of stairs, we finally reached the ground floor. Another few hundred feet to cross the lobby and we were finally  
outside the large building.

I was really only used to quiet situations, since that's all I've ever known, (Especially with the void and all that was apparently a 'Number card'.) and I was completely shocked at the sudden blast of sound and rush of movement as people walked to and fro all around.

I instinctively hid behind Astral, not sure how to handle all the activity.

He still kept that calm, impassive look on his face and started walking off into the middle of all of the chaotic noise, leaving me to run after him again.

"This city is called Brightwyn." He said, like he was pretending to be my tour guide.

He introduced me to some other places, though it was hard to hear him over all of the voices.

We made it to some sort of main city square or something like that and there was this _huge_ tower. It made all of the other buildings pale in comparison.

I tilted my head back to try and find the top, which hung overhead, half hidden in clouds.

Astral suddenly stiffened beside me and his eyes widened slightly. "Dark Mist, we must go back to Ena now." He said, sounding frightened.

"Why? What's happening? Is-"

He cut me off by grabbing my wrist and dragging me toward Ena's building, running so fast I could barely keep my feet under me.

When we made it back inside the lobby, he paused for breath after the sprint, which I was glad for, since there was quite a daunting number of stairs awaiting us further ahead.

Suddenly the entire ground began to shake.

"What was that?" I asked shakily.

Astral didn't answer and instead walked over to a window and looked out.

I joined him and had to stand on my tip-toes to see. It turns out those things I had thought were clouds had actually been far out in space and were just so bright they had appeared to cover the tower.

"What are those?" I asked him.

Again, he didn't answer and started dragging me up the stairs, where Ena joined us halfway there. She and Astral spoke in hushed voices, to keep me from hearing, no doubt.  
 _  
Why won't anyone answer me?_

The ground started shaking again and parts of the ceiling started falling.

I found myself trembling uncontrollably and looking around nervously. I'd always wanted out of the void, but now that I'm out, I want back. It had been safe there at least.

Ena then turned and grabbed both me and Astral, pulling us after her.

I was kinda getting sick of being dragged all over the place and my shoulder sockets were starting to ache, but I wasn't about to complain when it sounded like explosives were going off outside.

She shoved us both in a room. "Now both of you be quiet, alright? I'll be back very soon with some soldiers to protect you, alright?"

And with that, she was gone, shutting the door behind her.

The room was too dark to see, and I scooted a little closer to Astral as the entire room around us shook again, and more pieces of the ceiling rained down.

* * *

 **Dark Mist: Don't worry, next chapter will explain what's going on, so be patient. *Laughs evilly* Make you wait and suffer...  
Me: Dark Mist, stop being disturbing.  
Dark Mist: Why can't I do anything? I'm not allowed to threaten people, not allowed to murder Lance, not allowed to be disturbing... I HAVE MY RIGHTS!  
Me: Dark Mist, stop acting like an idiot.  
Dark Mist: -_- I hate this life...**


	3. The Enemy Strikes

Dark Mist: Why I'm still writing this, I have no idea...  
Me: 'Cause I'll make Astral lecture you if you don't.  
Dark Mist: Oh, right. Now I remember...

* * *

After waiting for what felt like hours, the door finally reopened with Ena and two others, who I guess were the soldiers she'd went to get.

The soldiers were both dressed in silver-blue armor and each had a sheathed sword at their waist.

Ena entered the room and crouched down by me and Astral.

"Don't worry. Everything's going to be alright. Eliphas will handle this." She whispered comfortingly.

I don't know who this Eliphas guy is, but how can he fix what's happening? It sounds like the planet is falling apart outside.

When Ena left again, Astral seemed to sense my unease about what she said about Eliphas and said, "She is right. This had occurred before and Eliphas has been able to stop them so far."

"Who's 'them'?" I asked.

He still seemed hesitant to tell me, but answered anyway. "They are called the Barians."

"Why are they attacking?"

I might finally get some answers for once!

"This I am uncertain of. Eliphas has not told me yet..." Astral replied.

"Why not?"

"I do not know."

Silence followed Astral's words except for the distant rumbling of the battle outside.

"What room are we in?" I asked, struggling to see in the unlit room.

"It is just a simple room. It holds little or no importance. I believe Ena just brought us here since there are no windows."

I nodded, even though he probably couldn't see me.

Another long silence followed, when an odd sound could be heard.

And it was getting louder; approaching fast.

It sounded similar to an on-coming jet.

Then the sounds of shattering glass and crumbling stone mixed with that noise and the entire building shook like never before.

The whole left side wall of the room was torn away and left in it's place was a towering wall of flame and falling debris.

I felt Astral shoving me to the opposite side of the room, though I was hardly aware of it.

Not long after the wall had been destroyed, the soldiers outside the door suddenly screamed in pain and there was the sound of metal against metal and bodies hitting the floor.

I found myself shaking even more violently as the door swung open, revealing a the silhouette of a solitary figure.

My eyes widened at the sight of blood dripping from the sword in his hand.

Then, he started towards us.  
 _  
He's going to kill us!_ I thought in despair, burying my face in Astral's shoulder and fighting back tears of terror.

I looked up to see him staring down at us.

I don't think I'll ever be able to forget the blue eyes shadowed by his yellow cloak. Assuming I live, that is.

Suddenly a voice sounded statically from a red gem on his bracelet.

"Mizar, we've located the vault. Get over here immediately!"

The figure, Mizar, turned and left then.

I realized I'd been holding my breath and sighed in relief.

If that call had come any later, Astral and I might be dead right now.

In my fear I'd forgotten Astral was there and by the light of the fire, I was able to see he looked just as terrified as I felt.

Astral then seemed to collect himself a little and gently started pushing me to the back corner of the room to stay better hidden.

And there we waited until the sounds of battle finally died away...

* * *

 **Dark Mist: Well, as you can tell, my life kinda sucked since the first day I was in existence, I spent it running for my life, hiding in a dark room, and nearly getting murdered. Wonderful childhood, wouldn't you agree?**


	4. The Number's War

**Dark Mist: Wow, it's been a LONG time since I updated this... Not to mention SOMEONE has yet to start writing his life story. *Glares at Lance*  
Lance: I'm working on it, okay? Jeez...  
Me: Anyhoo, enjoy the chapter.  
**

* * *

Astral and I stayed in the back corner until Ena returned and told us it was safe again.

As we left the room, we passed by many soldiers, some seriously injured, others not as much and I overheard some of their conversations as we walked past.

"All of Brightwyn was pretty much destroyed..."

"Several other surrounding cities were damaged as well..."

"What if we can't fight them off next time?"

Sure enough, when I finally caught a glimpse of the city from a hole in the wall, it had crumbled to pieces and what wasn't fallen was burning to the ground.

When we reached the ground floor, Ena told us to wait in the lobby while she went outside.

I was getting tired of being left behind all the time, so I started toward the door after her.

Astral grabbed my arm and stopped me. "She told us to wait here."

"Yeah, but don't you want to know what happened?" I asked him.

He stared at me for a few moments before nodding hesitantly.

I opened what was left of the door and stepped outside, Astral right behind me.

It was difficult to see through the smoke and dust. In fact, it was even hard to just _breathe_. The air was so thick, I might as well have been trying to breathe underwater. It was warm too, hot even, like a desert, from all the fire.

Squinting, I was barely able to spot Ena among the debris as she turned around a corner.

Without any warning to Astral, I ran off after her, not even sure if Astral was following.

Once I got to the spot I lost sight of her, I paused to look around, but couldn't find her anywhere.

I have to admit, it made me feel panicked.

Astral caught up a few seconds later. "Don't do that again." He said, though it might have supposed to be a growl, if he knew how to be menacing.

Deciding to ignore him, I asked, "Where is she? Can you see her?"

A few moments passed before Astral answered. "No..."

I winced at that. I really hoped that didn't mean we had...

"We've lost her, haven't we?" Astral asked, finishing my thought.

"Yeah, I think so... Let's just go back to the building and wait for her to-"

My voice was cut off by a loud noise somewhere behind us. It was like a crossover between a earthquake and a avalanche.

Astral and I quickly turned around to see the tower we'd been in fall to the ground in a cloud of dust.

"I am glad we did not stay in there..." Astral mumbled in shock.

I nodded numbly in agreement.

"It seems we have no choice but to continue searching for Ena then..." Astral said, turning onto a path and starting to walk away.

"H-Hey, wait up!"

We were wandering for quite some time before we finally found her talking to someone else in hushed voices.

"Who's that?" I whispered to Astral.

"That's Eliphas..."  
 _  
So that's Eliphas...?_ I thought. _Doesn't look like anyone special..._

Astral started towards them, which I hesitantly followed.

"Maybe interrupting them isn't a good idea..." I whispered to him.

"I am sure they will not mind if we tell them what happened."  
 _  
I hope he's right._

Once we were about five feet from them, they noticed us.

"I thought I told you to stay in the tower." Ena scolded, though it was still soft.

"It had collapsed and we did not know where else to go." Astral replied.

I hadn't noticed before, but when I looked at Eliphas, he seemed to be glaring at me. _What did I do?_

I glanced over at Astral and Ena, but they didn't seem to notice. _Maybe he was just always like that? Or because of the attack?_

"Then, let's find somewhere safer for you two to stay at." Ena replied, then looked over to Eliphas. "Perhaps they could stay at your tower?" I thought it sounded more like a command than a question.

"Very well. Wouldn't want them getting in the way." Eliphas growled.

Jeez, this guy really rubs me the wrong way...

"Alright, let's go." Ena said, ushering Astral and I towards the tower at the very center of the city.

* * *

 **Dark Mist: Ta da. Almost got killed again if we'd stayed in the tower. And you guys wonder why I'm so screwed up...**


End file.
